The RIBA Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee is looking to create a list of contacts of DEI chairpersons at the various law firms in the state. The list will be used as a resource to communicate and collaborate on RIBA’s DEI initiatives. We are working to compile the list of contacts over the next few months. If your firm has a DEI Committee, Task Force, and/or contact person, please reach out to Membership Services Coordinator NaKeisha Little at nlittle@ribar.com with the contact information of your firm’s DEI Committee chair. Thank you in advance for your help and support in making the Bar Association a more inclusive organization for all of our members!

Congratulations to DEI Committee member Nicole P. Dyszlewski for her selection as the inaugural recipient of the 2023 Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Trailblazer Award! The Award honors an attorney who encourages and cultivates social discourse related to DEI among all members of the Rhode Island Bar, supports the advancement of attorneys from diverse backgrounds to positions of leadership, and promotes interest in the practice of law among diverse populations. Attorney Dyszlewski was nominated for her instrumental assistance in helping to identify the first women attorneys in Rhode Island, including the lost history of the first woman of color to practice law in RI - Dorothy Crockett. She used this research to write two scholarly articles for the Law Review and now serves as the Director of Special Programs, Academic Affairs, for the Roger Williams School of Law. She teaches diversity in the law school and has also published a book, “Integrating Doctrine and Diversity: Inclusion and Equity in the Law School Classroom.”

Attorney Dyszlewski and our other outstanding award winners will be recognized at the Annual Meeting during the Annual Awards Reception on June 1^st at 4:30 pm. Join us for complimentary libations and hors d’oeuvres as we congratulate your colleagues on their achievements!

The Rhode Island Bar Association Annual Meeting is scheduled for Thursday, June 1 and Friday, June 2, 2023. Judge Victoria Pratt will join us as our opening plenary speaker. Judge Pratt is a former Chief Judge in the Newark Municipal Court in Newark, New Jersey. She is a nationally recognized expert in procedural justice and alternative sentencing and a committed advocate for reforming the criminal justice system. Judge Pratt will discuss attorney-client relationships and interaction with other attorneys and the court. Our closing plenary speakers are Vanessa Potkin, an attorney with the Innocence Project, and Cornelius Dupree an exoneree who was declared innocent of a 1980 conviction after serving 30 years of a 75-year prison sentence. Mr. Dupree will share his story and Attorney Potkin will discuss what the current trends are in the causes of wrongful convictions (such as forensics) and how wrongful conviction can be prevented in the future.

This year we have a lineup of 38 fantastic workshops in addition to the plenary programs with many focusing on DEI related topics including:

RIBA President Mark Morse will report on the status of the RIBA DEI initiatives during the morning announcements on Thursday prior to the plenary program. Join us as we once again gather in-person at the Rhode Island Convention Center to catch up with old friends, colleagues, and members of the judiciary. Click here to register for the 2023 Annual Meeting and click here to view the detailed Annual Meeting brochure. This is one meeting you don’t want to miss!